Device for feeding a lubricating oil or the like to the periphery of a rotating element

ABSTRACT

Apparatus for feeding lubricating oil to the surface of a rotating element, such as the thread of a reversible thread roller including a shaft fixed to the rotating element which has a cylindrical bore and at least one radial passage opening from the bore to said surface, an enlarged ring freely supported on the shaft, and means defining a friction surface against which the ring engages to transfer oil from the ring to the bore and thence through the passage as a result of centrifugal force. An oil sump is provided below the rotating element into which a portion of the ring projects at all times.

United States Patent 1191 Mair 1 DEVICE FOR FEEDING A LUBRICATING OIL OR THE LIKE TO THE PERIPHERY OF A ROTATING ELEMENT [75] Inventor: Anton Josef Mair, Durach, Germany [73] Assignee: A. Ott, Kempten, Germany [22] Filed: Feb. 21,1973 [2]] Appl. No.: 334,369

52 Us. c1. 184/11 A, 184/11 1) [51] Int. Cl. F0lm 9/06, Fl6n 7/26 [58] Field of Search 184/11 A, 11D

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,149,125 8/1915 George 184/11 D 1,847,418 3/1932 Stecdman 184/11 D 1,847,450 3/1932 Stcedman 184/11 D 1,871,826 8/1932 Stahl 184/11 D 1,998,338 4/1935 Spohrcr 184/11 D 2,039,469 5/1936 Williams 184/11 D 2,280,296 4/1942 Mantle 184/11 D 1111 3,826,338 1451 July 30,1974

2,540,103 2/1951 Dalrymplc 184/11 D 2,546,887 3/1951 Dalrymple 2,729,307 1/1956 Perrin 2,770,972 11/1956 Gratzmuller 184/1 1 D Primary ExaminerManuel A. Antonakas Assistant Examiner-Daniel J. OConnor Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Burton and Parker 1 1 ABSTRACT gages to transfer oil from the ring to the bore and thence through the passage as a result of centrifugal force. An oil sump is provided below the rotating element into which a portion of the ring projects at all times.

8 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures SHEET 20? 2 DEVICE FOR FEEDING A LUBRICATING OIL OR THE LIKE TO THE PERIPHERY OF A ROTATING ELEMENT BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of Invention The invention relates to an apparatus for feeding lubricating oil or the like to the circumference of a rotating roller element or the like, particularly to the thread of a reversible thread roller for cone winders, comprising a substantially cylindrical bore, coaxial with and surrounding the roller shaft, on at least one of the faces of the reversible thread roller, into which the lubricating oil is fed from an oil sump arranged below the roller and from which it is fed outwards to the thread, as a result of centrifugal force, in a substantially radial direction through at least one passage opening from the bore to the thread. Lubrication of the reversible thread is necessary to minimize friction between the thread and the shoe of the moving thread guide engaging in said thread- 2. Description of the Prior Art The previously used form of lubrication, the so-called oil lubrication by immersion, in which the reversible thread roller was immersed in the lubricant in the oil sump and moved the latter as a result of its rotation, is

now regarded as obsolete since at higher rotational speeds this method of lubrication gave rise to the formation of a film of oil and to great heat, and oil sprayed out of the slot in the thread guide, soiling the thread to be processed. In addition, the resulting centrifugal force had a disadvantageous effect in that it tended to avoided, and that furthermore the centrifugal force has a positive effect in thatit feeds the oil, supplied to the bore, directly to discrete selected points onthe reversible thread through the inlet. v

The problem underlying the invention is to provide an apparatus of the initially described type which avoids the aforementioned disadvantages without foregoing the advantages which can be obtained with this known embodiment; in particular an oil supply is to be provided in a space-saving manner without the aid of a wick and with minimum expenditure, which oil supply will meet all operational requirements with regard to reliability and freedom from maintenance.

This problem is solved in accordance with the inven' tion in that a ring surrounding and suspended from the roller shaft is provided to feed the lubricating oil from the oil sump into the bore, said ring having such a diameter and being guided in such a manner that it is constantly immersed in the lubricant in the oil sump and throw the oil, adheringto the reversible thread when the latter was immersed in the lubricant, in a radial direction away from the thread roller.

There is also known an apparatus of the initially described type in which the lubricating oil is fed from a wick which, on the one hand, dips into the lubricating oilin the sump and, on the other hand, projects into the bore in the thread roller. However, this apparatus has a number of disadvantages.

Firstly the wick can be properly fitted only with great difficulty for reasons of space. Furthermore, the end of the wickprojecting into the bore must always be arranged close to the wall of the bore so that it is ensured that the drop of outflowing oil is immediately fed and that there is always space for the following oil. On the other hand, however, it is necessary to prevent as far as possible the end of the wick from touching the wall of the bore; otherwise it may be easily moved and wound on to the roller shaft. Moreover, the supplyof lubricat ing oil by this wick is to a great extent dependend on viscosity, i.e., the quantity of oil can scarecly be determined or adjusted. Accordingly the wick material is always critical. Finally resinification or drying of the luduring rotation feeds this oil to at least one friction edge, lying in a plane substantially parallel to the plane of the ring, from which it is passed into the bore and thence by centrifugal force through a passage to the thread. v y r The ring, which is supported on and driven by the roller shaft, rotates more slowly than said shaft asa result of its larger diameter, and moves oil continuously out of the sump and feeds it to the friction edge. This friction edge can be either rigidly or rotatably mounted, but it must have a different circumferential speed to that of the ring. Preferably there is provided a rigid sleeve surrounding the roller shaft and projecting into the bore, said sleeve comprising, in the area above, in front of and behind the roller shaft, a notch or slot extending in the direction of the circumference, between the friction edges of which notch the ring is mounted with play and above which there is provided a stop to prevent said ring from slipping out.

The apparatus of the invention, its function and advantageous forms are described in more detail below with the aid of practical embodiments illustrated in the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS tion.

' DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED i EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 shows a reversible thread roller member 1 having a double thread 2. This thread roller member 1 is mounted concentrically on a roller shaft 3 which is in turn mounted by means of two ball bearings 5 in a housing 4 comprising an oil sump 6 with lubricating oil 7.

These reversible thread rollers 1 are used to control a thread guide 8 (only partially shown), the shoe 9 of which engages in the thread 2. If the thread roller 1 rotates, the reversible thread 2 guides the shoe 9 and therefore also the thread guide 8 back and forth,

thereby causing the formation of a cheese on the bobbin, to which the thread guide feeds the thread (not shown).

On both end faces of the illustrated thread roller member 1 there are provided substantially cylindrical bores. 11, coaxial'with and surrounding the roller shaft 3, the lubricating oil 7. being fed from the oil sump 6 below into'said bores. From these bores 11 the the lubricating oil is then fed outwardly to the thread 2, as a result of centrifugal force, in a substantially radial direction through passages'such as shown at l2.

In accordancewith the invention a ring 13 surrounding and suspended from the roller shaft 3 is provided to feed the lubricating oil 7 from the oil sump 6 into the bores 11, said ring having such a diameter and being guided in such a'manner that it is constantly immersed in the lubricating oil 7 in the sump 6 and during rotation feeds this oil to at least one friction edge, lying in a plant substantially parallel to the plane of the ring, from which edge it is passed into the bores 11.

As can be easily seen in FIG. 1, the two feeding means are practically symmetrical in the illustrated embodiment so that it is sufficient to refer in detail to the apparatus onthe left-hand side of the Fig; in the apparatus arranged on the right-hand side the same parts have the same reference numerals.

A rigid sleeve '14 is advantageously provided to surround the roller shaft 3 and project into the bore 11. This sleeve 14 comprises a notch or slot 15 extending in the direction of the circumference in the area above, in front of and behind the roller shaft 3. As can be seen particularly clearly in FIG. 2, the edges of this slot form friction'edges 16 between which the ring 13 is mounted with play. A stop is provided above the ring 13 to prevent the latter from slipping out, the stop in the illustrated embodiment being a transverse pin 17 arranged outside the sleeve 14 as shown in FIG. I.

The ring 13 is made of metal, and advantageously of steel or brass, but can also be advantageously made of a plastic material. I

. The apparatus of the invention operates as follows:

As the reversible thread roller member 1 and therefore the .roller shaft 3 rotate, the latter drivesthe ring 13 which, as a result of its larger diameter, naturally rotates slower than theroller shaft, which rotates at approximately 5,000 rpm. The ring 13 moves the adhering lubricant 7 out of the oil sump 6. In the vicinity of the slot 15 the ring 13 feeds this oil to the friction edges '16, alongthe righbhand or left-hand side of which the ring 13 can move during rotation. The friction oil then runs down along the wall of the sleeve 14 and collects at this point in order to flow from left to right into the bore 11. The movement of the lubricating oil from the bore to the thread 2 is accomplished by centrifugal force, the oil passing through the passage 12, as 'indicated above. I

It should. be mentioned that the ring 13 also deposits part of the fed oil on the roller shaft 3 from which the oil is then thrown against the wall 18 of the sleeve 14 as a result of centrifugal force.

' versible thread roller 1 necessarily have different circumferential speeds, a frictional action, which is sufficient for lubrication of the thread 2, particularly at lower rotational speeds or lower speeds of the shoe 9, and which can be used for feeding lubricating oil to the bore 1 1, may be obtained with the embodiment of FIG. 3, eliminating the need of a notched sleeve '14 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

In the preferred embodiments the lateral play of the ring 13 in the slot 15 or between the frictional edge 16a and the side contact surface 21 is approximately 1 millimeter. However, if necessary, greater or smaller clearances may prove advantageous.

The radial play between the ring 13 and the transverse pin 17 or the projection 24 is such that the ring 13 must always pass through the lubricant 7 in the oil sump 6, even when in engagement with the pin or projection. p v 7 It should be noted that the apparatus according to the invention can be advantageously used whenever liquids are to be delivered in relatively small quantities from a sump or the like to rotating shafts, vessels or the like, in applications which do not justify the cost of a pump.

What is claimed is:

1. A system for lubricating the outer surface of a rotatable element, comprising, in combination: a rotatable element, a shaft connected coaxially to the element and extending therefrom at one end for rotation therewith, a cylindrical bore in said one end of the element coaxial with and surrounding said shaft, an oil sump spaced below said element, a radial passage in said element opening from the bore to the outer surface of the element for transferring lubricating oil therethrough by centrifugal force, a ring supported on said shaft and having such a diameter as to constantly dip into lubricating oil in the sump, a stationary sleeve surrounding said shaft in spaced relation therefrom and extending into said bore, said sleeve having a circumaxial slot through which said ring freely extends with the slot presenting edges for scraping engagement with the ring to wipe lubricating oil therefrom and into the sleeve for transfer therealong and into said bore, and abutment means for preventing the ring from gliding out of the slot.

2. Apparatus as defined in claim 1, characterized in that said bore is spaced circumaxially from the sleeve whereby lubricating oil transferred therealong from the ring drips from the sleeve to the bore.

3. The invention defined by claim 1 characterized in that there is ashaft and coaxial bore as aforesaid for and at each end of the rotatable element with a ring and fixed sleeve for eachsuch shaft, and a radial passage in the element at each end connecting each such bore with the outer surface of the element.

4. The invention defined in claim 1 characterized in that there are reversible threads in the outer surface of circumference of the sleeve.

7. Apparatus as defined in claim 1, characterized in that said ring is made of metal.

8. Apparatus as defined in claim 1, characterized in that said ring is made of plastic material. 

1. A system for lubricating the outer surface of a rotatable element, comprising, in combination: a rotatable element, a shaft connected coaxially to the element and extending therefrom at one end for rotation therewith, a cylindrical bore in said one end of the element coaxial with and surrounding said shaft, an oil sump spaced below said element, a radial passage in said element opening from the bore to the outer surface of the element for transferring lubricating oil therethrough by centrifugal force, a ring supported on said shaft and having such a diameter as to constantly dip into lubricating oil in the sump, a stationary sleeve surrounding said shaft in spaced relation therefrom and extending into said bore, said sleeve having a circumaxial slot through which said ring freely extends with the slot presenting edges for scraping engagement with the ring to wipe lubricating oil therefrom and into the sleeve for transfer therealong and into said bore, and abutment means for preventing the ring from gliding out of the slot.
 2. Apparatus as defined in claim 1, characterized in that said bore is spaced circumaxially from the sleeve whereby lubricating oil transferred therealong from the ring drips from the sleeve to the bore.
 3. The invention defined by claim 1 characterized in that there is a shaft and coaxial bore as aforesaid for and at each end of the rotatable element with a ring and fixed sleeve for each such shaft, and a radial passage in the element at each end connecting each such bore with the outer surface of the element.
 4. The invention defined in claim 1 characterized in that there are reversible threads in the outer surface of the rotatable element and said radial passage communicates with these threads.
 5. Apparatus as defined in claim 1 characterized in that the width of said slot exceeds the axial dimension of the ring by approximately 1 millimeter.
 6. Apparatus as defined in claim 1 characterized in that said stop is a transverse pin positioned beyond the circumference of the sleeve.
 7. Apparatus as defined in claim 1, characterized in that said ring is made of metal.
 8. Apparatus as defined in claim 1, characterized in that said ring is made of plastic material. 